


Working in Quarantine

by Sage_Stories



Series: Adventures in Queerantine [1]
Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: Anxiety, Barisi - Freeform, Domestic, Domestic Fluff, Feelings, Fluff, Love, M/M, Quarantine
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-16
Updated: 2020-05-16
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:47:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,941
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24213160
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sage_Stories/pseuds/Sage_Stories
Summary: Rafael is working. Sonny is clingy and anxious.
Relationships: Rafael Barba/Dominick "Sonny" Carisi Jr.
Series: Adventures in Queerantine [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1747645
Comments: 2
Kudos: 36





	Working in Quarantine

**Author's Note:**

> TW: Talks of anxiety cuz of quarantine
> 
> I may be projecting onto Sonny, but I have a feeling he'd be really anxious right now. I'm just saying. He's a germaphobe and I think he probably has anxiety too (probs cuz I have it and I'm projecting it). I have started picturing Raf having Generalized Anxiety Disorder...Probs cuz I have it. I have "high functioning" GAD and I think Raf might too. 
> 
> I think it's important to highlight this in writing because I didn't know I was struggling with GAD until literally last month when my therapist mentioned it to me and I'm 22 and I've been like this my whole life, dude and never had a diagnosis. I've just been successful and pushed through and yeah. My therapist told me, "You know you have a lot of anxiety, but you've somehow managed it well, but we're gonna see what we can do to make it a little better, yeah?" Basically, the bottom line is people are struggling and people don't know. And quarantine has not been fun. Been doing okay today tho! :) 
> 
> Rafael is working in public policy and government relations type work! That's what I do some work in so I thought I'd expand on his work in Iowa with voter fraud and the like.
> 
> ANYWAY!
> 
> Rafael is working at home and Sonny wants attention. That's it.
> 
> Enjoy! :)

Rafael certainly hadn’t been missing the not so subtle sighs eliciting from his fiance over the last hour or so. He’d sighed in the kitchen, he’d sighed from the hall, and he’d sighed by the windows his eyes scanning the city below. Rafael had only noticed them once he moved into the living room although he’d heard Sonny’s clear unrest from the hallway when he was chipping away at some intricate policy document for work in their office. Rafael’s therapist had suggested he move spaces between tasks and have separate spaces for his various activities, so he was really only following her suggestion by moving in between tasks and taking breaks between his different commitments. He had worked most of the morning and now it was the afternoon and he had moved from his office to the dining room table to grade some assignments to switch up the scenery. 

He could clearly see and  _ hear  _ his restless Sonny laying on the couch hardly reading the book in his hand. He knew Sonny was really struggling during quarantine he needed his work, more activity, and people, he was an extrovert after all. On top of that, Sonny did not do well with virus talk and germs. To say he was worried about all this was probably an understatement, Sonny was quite panicked, but trying really hard to reel in his anxiety. Sonny needed more stimulation than what Rafael could really provide on a daily basis all cooped up inside except for their daily walks around the neighborhood and even those took a lot of coaxing to get Sonny out of the house somedays. Sometimes Sonny would worry himself into a frenzy, but Rafael was doing his best to be patient they had been working with Sonny's therapist and they’d been working on some coping mechanisms about how to handle the stress during this unsettling time.

Then there was another god damn sigh.

“Dominick,” Rafael inquired in a warning tone. “Is there a problem? Can I help you?” He looked over the rim of his glasses, he knew Sonny really liked that.

“I’ve been waiting for you to pay attention to me.” 

“Mi amor,” Rafael pinched the bridge of his nose. “I’m working.” He replied simply. “I’m essential.” He teased. 

That had been a bit of a joke between them when Sonny’s office was working on moving their workload to remote services. Sonny had been working with everyone at the DA’s office on how to drop charges or alter sentences and help comb through cases to determine who could leave the prison system. He was also working to help move everyone over to remote services, but that only took so much time. Sonny now had almost nothing to do while Rafael had plenty. And Sonny still had relatively less work than his fiance at the moment. 

Rafael had agreed to teach a couple of courses at NYU before the pandemic started and Harvard among a couple of other institutions had requested his attendance at a few online events after it began. Rafael’s position at his new job had only picked up since the virus with a more nationwide push for mail-in voting and concerns about voter suppression and inequity in public policy. And now Sonny was discouraged that he had nothing to do, but Rafael did have work to do.

“I know, but I want to hang out with you.” He was sitting up now with a cheeky grin. Rafael did admit he would like to ‘hang out’ with the tall blonde man child who was grinning at him on the couch his overgrown hair pointing in all different directions. Rafael had suggested he cut it for him, but Sonny refused to let him approach him with any scissors. Sonny was walking towards him now straightening up his clothes and smoothing down his wild blonde tresses. He’d been rolling around on the couch for the last half hour, so he looked adorably disheveled. “What are you even doing?” 

“Correcting a paper.” He replied. “A student reached out about an extension last week and so she turned her paper in late. I want to grade it before the unit 2 essay is due this weekend so she can adjust her writing if need be. Then I need to look over some discussion boards.”

Sonny just nodded coming up behind Rafael to look over his shoulder. He was enjoying the closeness as Sonny leaned against the hand placed next to the laptop with the other on his shoulder. He could tell he was scanning the title and judging the style. 

“Is she any good?”

“Quite good,” Rafael replied distractedly focusing on the screen in front of him. 

Sonny hummed in reply and kissed the top of his head. Rafael loved that feeling and smiled in response until Sonny sighed again after that he just rolled his eyes looking up at him. When Sonny realized Rafael wasn't going to stop working he sighed again.

“I’m going to start dinner,” Sonny declared walking away. “What do you want?”

Rafael was barely listening. 

“Mm, whatever you want,” Rafael muttered burying himself in the interesting point that Maria was making in her third paragraph. 

* * *

Rafael could smell the chicken pot pie baking in the oven now and his stomach was growling. Sonny had mentioned he was thinking about making one last week, but they never got around to it. Sonny must have used some of the leftover chicken from Monday night. Rafael was very thankful to have Sonny around because while Rafael could cook (because his mami demanded he have that skill) he honestly did not find it all that enjoyable right now. They were cooking almost every meal when Rafael was used to eating out a few times a week and the grocery shopping was difficult, to say the least.

Rafael’s mother easily got groceries through the mail after Rafael gave her some suggestions and walked her through the process. Sonny’s parents had an army to get groceries to them, so they didn’t have to worry about them too much. Usually, Teresa or Gina was able to handle most of the shopping for them with Tommy and Bella dropping by to drop off their kids’ artwork from being at home all day. Sonny and Rafael would facetime and partake in zoom calls with the family and they’d have dinner together too. Sonny always loved shopping and picking his own ingredients, but now he had to pick everything out online because for Sonny going to the store was not an option. Rafael had learned that the hard way when he suggested it and Sonny worried and talked himself into tears. They were working on that.

Rafael realized he hadn’t even comprehended what he had just read over the discussion post and started from the beginning of the first section. He felt a presence lurking behind him again and he looked up to see the younger man smiling down at him. He clearly took Rafael’s smirk as an invitation to crowd him behind his chair. 

“Whatcha doin’ now?” Sonny inquired annoyingly resting his head on his shoulder. 

“Grading discussion posts,” Rafael muttered not giving Sonny the satisfaction of responding to the little kiss being placed on his cheek. “My students are really understanding the concepts which is really pleasing to see.”

Sonny hummed pulling up a chair to hover next to Rafael. Rafael really did love his fiance and he was truly looking forward to marrying him. If only they were able to plan the wedding given their current circumstances. They had planned for next spring, but they still had places to see and he was a little worried their plans were going a little haywire, it didn’t matter he loved his fiance, but Rafael was trying to focus on this one more post--

Sonny’s hand touched his thigh his lips just grazing his earlobe.

“If you were my professor--”

“I’m going to stop you there.” Rafael’s nose almost knocked into Sonny’s then as he turned to face the blue wide-eyed man opposite him. “I don’t want to think about that while I’m grading.” Sonny’s face fell into an adorable little pout and it almost made Rafael give in... _ Almost.  _ “Maybe later.” He smirked a little then at the suggestive tone.

“Well, are you almost done?” Sonny crossed his arms as he whined a little.

“Not quite.” He replied his eyes falling back to the screen in front of him. 

“Will you stop working after dinner?”

“Yes.” The simple answer seemed to satisfy his clingy partner. He did plan to stop once dinner was ready. He wanted to do some grading now, so this weekend they could spend all their time together. Sonny had work albeit it light during the week but nothing on the weekends, so Rafael liked to try and spend more time with him during these times.

He did admit it was difficult to be home and not constantly be touching and laying and talking with Sonny or even just existing while doing their own thing as they often did. It was odd to have to adjust to the work from home mentality when their home was so often used just to be together. While working from home was something they certainly have both done, once they were a couple they did their best to leave work at work or limit their hours on cases at home. Their new home together was supposed to be more work free and be more them time...That was all a bit moot now. 

“Baby,” Sonny was smiling at him from the kitchen which had a clear view from his spot at the dining table. “Dinner’s ready.” Rafael’s stomach was growling since he started sauteing the vegetables and he was really excited to be eating and relaxing with Sonny for the rest of the evening. Rafael closed his laptop and stashed away his work in their office before returning to the kitchen where Sonny was serving himself. Rafael sidled up into Sonny’s side and kissed a trail of kisses up his neck and landed a smooch right on his cheek. 

“Mm…” Sonny huffed. “Where was this enthusiasm earlier?” 

“I was working.” Rafael shrugged grabbing the plate Sonny had laid out for him and scooped out some pot pie and the fresh salad Sonny made for the two of them. “And I can’t be bothered when I’m working.” 

“Oh, sure! You can only bother me then?” Sonny challenged slapping his butt as he stalked away. It’s true, Rafael did have a habit of bothering Sonny especially when he was in between jobs and had nothing better to do several months ago. “I already picked what we’re watching!” His long-legged fiance beat him into the living room clicking on their new obsession on Netflix. 

Rafael chuckled easily falling into the couch and enjoying the closeness next to Sonny as they ate their delicious dinner. Rafael almost moaned when the pie hit his tongue the flavors tasting homey and warm. Sonny watched him as he smiled as he chewed. Sonny always loved watching Rafael enjoy his cooking and sometimes Rafael exaggerated his appreciation because it made Sonny look just oh so happy. Once Sonny knew he was satisfied he leaned in to give him a kiss on his cheek. 

"It's delicious, thanks for making dinner. I love you." Rafael patted Sonny's thigh.

"I love you too." Sonny beamed and turned back to the screen and they grew immersed in the program on the TV Soon they’d be finished and likely too distracted by each other to pay any attention to the show on Netflix.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!
> 
> Be well and stay safe! <3


End file.
